Untying the Gordian Knot: utility computing is a great concept but is still largely in the planning stages. Current software licensing models are proving to be a prime barrier to adoption

Telecom Asia, Nov, 2004 by Stefan Hammond

The legendary Gordian Knot fixed an oxcart to a pole. Legend decreed that whoever untangled the perplexing rope-puzzle would rule all of Asia.

In 333 BC, Alexander the Great pondered the hellish knot. He drew his sword and sliced through it. Then he went on to rule all of Asia.

In 2004, utility computing (UC) is a dense tangle of promises with a few vital strands of functionality. Although progress is being made, Asia still awaits its Alexander. No one's poised with sharpened steel ready to slice through the tangle and release the true potential of UC.

Pinning down a definition of utility computing can be like tying a knot in a snake; just when you think you've done it, the critter slithers away.

The ultimate goal is simple: when you need computing power, you plug into a socket (or fire up your wireless device), grab it, then pay for what you use. It's an appealing vision--you pay for computing power and software only when you need it. No more money wasted on computer servers that are woefully underused and software programs that sit on the shelf. Utility computing is IT efficiency on a grand scale never before experienced--at least in theory.

"Within the space of a year," said Alastair McAulay, managing consultant for PA Consulting Group, "utility computing has progressed from being an esoteric idea to one of the most talked-about topics in the arena of IT service delivery. The major industry players, such as IBM and HP, claim that it is going to have one of the biggest impacts on the industry since the birth of the Internet, with UC potentially developing into a $50 billion industry."

"But as with all the hyped trends of the past few years," cautioned McAulay, "utility computing should be approached with caution."

Vendor-speak

Everyone seems to agree that the ideal for UC is a "plug-into-the-wall and pay-as-you-go" model But vendors tend to stick with their game plans, pointing out the similarities between their products and the utopian plug-and-play model. Many of the solutions offered by vendors are elegant and adaptive, but they also tend to be custom-designed to client specifications. The vision of seamless computing power flowing into our offices is simply not yet reality.

"Users should be able to request information or computation and have it delivered--as much as they want and whenever they want," said Kevin Cheng, technology marketing manager for Oracle greater China. "The goal is to make computing a utility, a commodity and ubiquitous ... this view of utility computing is, of course, a 'client side' view."

"IBM sees utility computing as the first step toward e-business on demand," declared Garry Willinge, director of IBM Global Services for Hong Kong. He said IBM introduced the concept in October 2002, which other vendors have followed.

Other vendors lay claim to the UC space under different monikers. HP prefers the term "adaptive enterprise" to explain its vision of UC. "It's constructing an IT environment flexible enough to deliver what you really need--simplicity, agility and value," said Steve Fink, director of IT consolidation solutions for HP. "It's lowering your IT-related costs, maximizing return and mitigating risk."

"The term 'utility computing' is used to denote a set of capabilities that enable compute, storage and network resources to be offered as a utility, i.e. to provide these resources as needed for application processing and do this in an automated fashion," said Michael Chue, Veritas' country manager for Hong Kong. "It is no different than a water utility. You turn on the tap. It's available."

"Sun defines utility computing as intelligently matching IT resources to business demand on a pay-for-use basis," said Adrian Pang, managing director Asia-Pacific for Sun Microsystems Finance. "By 'intelligently matching,' we refer to the combination of technologies, business processes or applications, and services that address our customers' unique needs."

"Utility computing should be like electricity and water--if you turn it on, it's there," said Raymond Chu, head of IT for Hong Kong's Housing Authority. "There should be no additional resource issues for the end-user. This is an ideal situation, because even with electricity and water, you sometimes have resource issues. For example, with older buildings that lack adequate capacity. But ideally, for UC, throughput should equal demand.

"As an IT user, I'm willing to pay a premium [for UC services]. Say, a basic charge for a basic capacity, and an extra 10% for on-demand usage. This type of service would add value, and help eliminate my IT headaches. You shouldn't have to put in your own generator to get electricity nowadays.

"My biggest concern is whether the hardware and software vendors are ready," said Chu. "Out of all the conferences I attended, I didn't see examples that addressed our needs. To be successful as a utility, vendors must prove their functionality across a wide range of businesses."

Ready for primetime?

Chu suggests that vendors looking to deploy UC should attract early-adopters by initially offering these services at a low cost. "Once enterprises get used to it, it will take root. But this will take some time. As end-users, we are looking for standard metering, ease-of-use and mature tech skills on the part of the vendors."